I love travelling and especially visiting and exploring new places. Now that we are a family of 4, travelling abroad becomes a little more difficult to do. It can be quite expensive and takes a lot of planning with 2 young children. Last April we travelled to Peru to introduce Sienna to my family and friends. It was a lovely trip but the flights are expensive and the journey is very tiring. We would like to travel more but perhaps going overseas is something that we will need to put aside until the girls are a little bit older and our budget improves!! Therefore, the best option for us at the moment would be to stay in the UK and visit lots of new places here. The UK has lots of lovely places to visit so I thought it could be a great idea to do a bucket list of the 5 places I would like to visit in 2016.
Since arriving to the UK I have lived in London. It will be 11 years in January 2016! Wow I just noticed that this is really a long time! I really love living here and there are a lot places that I still haven’t visited. So here is my list:
Bath
We have passed through Bath before but we have never stayed and explored the area. This is definitely a place that I would like to go and visit with my family. I think the girls would enjoy it. This is a beautiful looking small city with beautiful architecture, iconic sights and a fascinating history. They have interesting, digestible galleries and museums like Holbourne and One Royal Crescent. We could also explore the caves at Wookey Hole, see the lions and tigers at Longleat or have a tour along the River Avon.
We could also find out about how William Herschel discovered the planet Uranus and how Jane Austen spent her time in Bath. I’m also dying to visit The Roman Baths, as I think this would be so exciting! Of course we’d also have to visit the world famous Stonehenge.
Cotswolds
This is a place that I find fascinating and is actually a place that I would love to live some day. I have also passed through here but have never stopped to explore either. I have seen so many beautiful photos of the area, I love the gorgeous cottages!
It is famous for hundreds of honey-coloured limestone villages in a beautiful rural setting. It looks like you could have travelled back from the 21st century to another era. How great is that? The Cotswolds is perfect for walking and cycling having numerous trails surrounded by stunning countryside. This of course is even better in the summer. I would love to escape here for a long weekend with my family.
Bournemouth
Oh beautiful Bournemouth. I have been in Bournemouth before but I haven’t stayed more than a day, so in 2016 I would love to stay for a long weekend with my family. The beach is beautiful. We have a friend who lives nearby in Christchurch so we actually stayed there in a Travelodge hotel for a couple of days and on the third day we went to Bournemouth and drove along the coast. We saw the Bournemouth Pier but we didn’t really explore the area properly so we definitely want to go back next summer. Who wouldn’t like a break at the seaside? We certainly would!!
We would love to explore the parks and gardens more, perhaps trying the Bournemouth Balloon, using the chair-lifts to see a proper view of the coast and to this time have a proper walk to their Pier. Bournemouth is a beautiful place on the south coast and has plenty of options for food and drinks too so it would be lovely to do all of that!! 🙂
Bella and Daddy at Sandbanks a few years ago
When we were there, we actually drove to Adventure Wonderland which is in Christchurch, Dorset and we had a lot of fun. We recommend this place if you fancy going to a fun park with your kids. The other place we stopped by was Sandbanks Poole. This is near to Poole which is not far along the coast from Bournemouth and it was a really awesome experience. Sandbanks is actually the fourth most expensive place to live on the Planet! Can you believe that? I really liked it and I would like to go back again next year.
Travelodge have 4 hotels around the Bournemouth area which are great value and all well located. As I mentioned before we have already stayed at the one located in Christchurch and we were very pleased with it so I’m sure any of the other more central options will be even better to stay in.
Lake District
This is a place that we really want to visit. I’ve heard lots of great things about the Lake District so this is definitely one place that I’m really looking forward to explore. It is well known for its fine scenery, green countryside and grand views. I would love to experience the great outdoors there with my family. I’m sure the girls would love to go on a bike ride down the country lanes. You can also do a day-long hike across the hills although not sure we are up to this yet as Sienna is still too young.
It would be nice to explore their National Park. I was searching about interesting things to do in the Lake District and I came across Brockhole which is the The Lake District Visitor Centre and has information about many interesting activities to do when around the area so it could be interesting to go there.
St Ives in Cornwall
I really would like to go to St Ives. This is a place that I have in my to do list of places to visit in the UK since I arrived to this country. If you are a regular reader of my blog you will know that I’m from Peru and I love the seaside. I really miss watching the surfers fill the sea, waiting for the next wave to come. I can actually see this from my parents apartment when I visit. I think half of my friends or more are surfers or do this as a hobby. A very good friend who was living in the UK before told me that St Ives is a place where he felt a little bit more close to home as he was able to experience that feeling again. Since that moment I really wanted to go there and explore the area. I have only seen photos of it and I’m absolutely in love with the place already. This is definitely a place that I would like to go and visit in 2016!
Have you visited these places before? What are your UK Travel Bucket List for 2016? Please leave your comment as I would love to read your choices for 2016.
*Disclaimer: this is a collaborative post with Travelodge but all the thoughts and opinions are mine. The photos were taken from labelled from reused modification from a Google search.
Thanks for stopping by,
Love you all ❤️
Franca 💋
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You’ve picked lots of lovely places and we’ve been lucky enough to visit the majority. Although we’ve never been to Bath and it’s definitely somewhere we’d like to go, it’s supposed to be really lovely.
We went to Christchurch for the first time in 2014 for a wedding and our last UK holiday was in Sandbanks, which is just gorgeous.
I’m not sure if we’re going to get away this year as we have some other bits and pieces we need to save some money for including saving up to buy a house and lots of other little things. I could do with a holiday thought, oh well.
Laura x #KCACOLS
These are all such great choices. We used to live just down the road from Bournemouth and I went there to meet friends quite often but we never visited the beach with my girls. Yours will love it! The Lake District is one of my all time favourite places to go on holiday and you have to go to the spa in Bath. It’s on my very long bucket list 🙂 #KCACOLS
I’m from the UK but immigrated to New Zealand 6 years ago. Fabulous decision. I love NZ. But my biggest regret is not visiting more places in the UK and Europe whilst it was all within easy-ish reach. Now that I’m on the other side of the globe such visits are damn near impossible. I really hope you achieve each and every one of these holiday destinations. #KCACOLS
Great choices Franca but got a few more suggestions for you, places we have been to in our touring caravan and really enjoyed and are family friendly.
Lake District – Windermere (Bowness on Windermere). Maybe not the most picturesque of them all, but easy walks for prams and small children on push bikes. Close to all amenities. Beatrix Potter world on your doorstep. Regular boat trips around the lake and drop offs at other locations.
St Davids (Pembrokeshire) – Some of the best beaches in the country
Anglesey – My spiritual home, Fab walks, beaches and views across to Snowdonia. Just a slower, simpler, more chilled way of life.
PS: Totally endorse the Padstow recommendation or anywhere along the Camel Estuary. We went to Polzeath every year for 7 years which is opposite Padstow. Again lots of great beaches – some shallower so ideal for smaller kids, others for those that like to surf. Great bike rides along the camel trail (and lovely tea rooms in either direction!)
Best of luck with your choices. #KCACOLS
Lovely places to visit. I absolutely love Norfolk especially Great Yarmouth and I had a lovely time in Somerset years back but I would love to visit Brighton and Bournemouth too #KCACOLS
I have been to all of those places, except the Lake District. They are all great places. I grew up in Bristol so spent a lot of time in Bath – I love it there! I used to love Victoria park as a kid – def a place to take the little ones if you get chance. The Cotswolds is beautiful and so worth the trip as is st Ives. The beaches there are lovely…aloud possibly not compared to Peru… I hope you get to all the places and enjoy! #KCACOLS xx
I know I have already left a comment but just popping back for #KCACOLS x
Great list Franca! I live very close to Bath (heading in tomorrow for a shopping trip) and it is just beautiful especially in the summer. Scotland is also a great place to visit, I’m biased though since it’s where I’m from.
Azaria